Symbiotic microorganisms of the leafhopper Deltocephalus pulicaris (FALLEN, 1806) (Insecta, Hemiptera, Cicadellidae: Deltocephalinae) : molecular characterization, ultrastructure and transovarial transmission

Abstract

The ovaries of the leafhopper Deltocephalus pulicaris are accompanied by large organs termed bacteriomes, which are composed of numerous polyploid cells called bacteriocytes. The cytoplasm of bacteriocytes is tightly packed with symbiotic microorganisms. Ultrastructural and molecular analyses have revealed that bacteriocytes of D. pulicaris contain two types of symbionts: the bacterium “Candidatus Sulcia muelleri” and the bacterium “Candidatus Nasuia deltocephalinicola”. Both symbionts are transovarially transmitted from the mother to the next generation.